Channeling Winter & Daniel Fast

Loving these winter looks below..would so love a pair of brown booties like those below - lovely.

   

 

via pinterest 

In other news, we are beginning the Daniel Fast today.  It's a time for the church to corporately 'fast' and seek God.  Seek Him for vision for the future, for providing a word for the church, the city, our family, and to grow in our relationship with Him.  The 'fast' portion is essentially eating vegan - anything that is natural and comes straight from the ground.  Some things we won't be eating / drinking are: sweets, white grains, caffeine, processed foods.  Ahh, Lord help me now.  It's 21 days, and I'm actually very excited.  I think this will prove to be a rich time in the lives of those who commit to this.  Hopefully I'll have a few recipes to share after this is all said and done!  

Cookies 'n Cream Candy Cane Fudge Brownies

Can you imagine?  We did:



And it was uh-may-zing. Do it. now.  Before TJ's sells out of those joe-joes, because they go fast.   

Recipe for the brownies here (I also found it odd to put the ice cream in the brownies, but it really did work).

Thanksgiving Tablescapes

Looking for inspiration with Thanksgiving literally days away? I've got your back.  We're not hosting Thanksgiving this year, but nevertheless I rounded up some ideas to stow away for future years, or to inspire you to get your creative kick on. 

For the dreamer in me..

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Now, lets get real.. or at least realistic. 

Place cards - good idea, especially if you're serving a large number of people.  It's always fun to shift people around from who they'd normally sit by. Helps strike up more interesting conversations. 

Oh, and personally, I would spray paint these pears gold (on a gold kick right now, and I can't help it).

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Alright, now Martha's people have got the right idea with these gold pumpkin place card holders.  I found little pumpkins like these at Trader Joes for about 60 cents a pop.  (Sidenote: Does anyone else say 'punkin' instead of 'pumpkin'?)

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Charger plates: The non-useful plates that go under the actual useful plates.  They are charming in my opinion - a complete waste to many others.  (we found some gold ones at Walmart last year on sale after Christmas)

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Flowers.  Yes, please. 

 

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Candles. I would personally add in some tall candles with this mix of low, but it's still a great table :-)

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A cute idea for a kid's table.  

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Now, lastly - make sure to leave room for the food.  

 

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That was fun.  What did I miss? Do you have any Thanksgiving decorating traditions you'd like to share? 

Recipe: Scrambled Eggs in Puff Pastry

This morning I didn't have the energy or desire to go to the gym, so I did one of those old school crunch fitness videos (circa 90's) on Netflix.  Brian was awake so I asked him if he would do it with me (you know extra motivation!).  He declined, so I persuaded him that if he would do just 5 minutes I would make breakfast.  Well, 5 minutes he did. I understand he likely stopped as it was mostly women in the video class, there was a lot of coordination/movement, and the only man was in the back and scrawnier than most.

Regardless, onto breakfast - I knew we should have eggs, and I had bought puff pastry last night to make some more prosciutto palmiers, so I tried my hand at putting them together.  I found a few recipes online, all similar, and so this is adapted from those. 

Ingredients:

* 5 large eggs

* Salt and pepper to taste

* Butter for pan

* 1 sheet puff pastry (was probably 9x12'')

* 3 T. cheddar cheese

* 3 T. diced peppers (optional)

* 1 T. diced onion (optional)

Directions:

- Whisk 4 eggs together with salt and pepper.  Melt butter in medium saucepan over medium heat and add peppers & onions if desired.  After peppers & onions soften, add the eggs and cook while gently pushing, lifting, and folding them from one side of the pan to the other until they are nicely clumped, shiny, and wet, 2 to 3 minutes.  Transfer eggs to large plate and place in fridge to cool.

- Whisk remaining egg and brush half over the puff pastry.  Divide the chilled scrambled eggs, cheese into two equal portions. Arrange one portion of the scrambled eggs, and cheese over the bottom half of the pastry, leaving a 1/2 inch border at the edges. Fold the top half of the pastry over the filling and press down with a fork to seal the edges. Repeat this process with the remaining puff pastry sheet, eggs and cheese. Transfer both pastries to a rimmed baking sheet, wrap lightly with plastic wrap (or set foil overtop), and refrigerate until firm, 15 minutes.

- Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Remove the pastries from the refrigerator, remove the plastic wrap/foil, and brush the tops with the remaining beaten egg (I also sprinkled some seasoned salt on top). Bake until golden brown, 25-30 minutes. Cool and enjoy!

Quick check-in and a Soup Recipe

This morning I kept clicking my header to refresh my blog, hoping that a guest post, or something new and exciting would magically appear.  ha.  Not going to happen.  I know my posts are intermittent and not always so personal, but I hope they keep you mildly entertained and at least inspired. 

This week was incredibly refreshing, a blessing that I take pretty seriously.  I was home with Brian, we made meals together, we hung out with friends, we had some friends in town, we had some events at church that were mind-blowing (yeah, I'm for real), and I was able to have some me time.  I even got a hair cut.  Now that's a special treat.  We've been working on our Ikea Rast Hack that I'm hoping to finish up this weekend.  I tell you, we are snails, people. 

On another note, you know how I've been praying for joy lately?  Well this week it was granted.  And I say that not like God withholds it some weeks and not others, but I'm learning (daily) what it is like to come into agreement with Him and experience the joy (and peace) that comes along with. 

I read this quote this morning. 

"The Bible talks plentifully about joy, but it nowhere talks about a ‘happy Christian.’ Happiness depends on what happens; joy does not. Remember, Jesus Christ had joy, and he prayed ‘that they might have my joy fulfilled in themselves.’”

- Oswald Chambers

In other news, I am really desiring some delicious soup. I'm thinking of making this:

Image via pinterest

chunky veg soup

recipe adapted from Donna Hay and found via this blog

1 tbsp olive oil

1 onion, chopped

2 cloves of garlic, chopped finely

2 stalks of celery, chopped

3 carrots, chopped

1 tbsp fresh thyme

sea salt and fresh ground pepper

2 x cans of chopped tomatoes (14oz)

1 1/2 litres of water or stock

1 cup of pasta (your choice)

 In a large sauce pan over medium heat add the oil, onion, carrots, celery, garlic, thyme and salt and pepper and cook until just soft. Add the tomatoes and water and simmer for 15 minutes. Add the pasta and cook for another 8-10 min. Serves 4-6.

**Do any of you know of a vegetarian stock?  I'm curious how this soup would taste with the water even though they say it's fine...

Word World Rainbow Cake

Our friend's son had his fourth birthday a few weekends ago.. I offered to make a cake because, well I honestly just really wanted to. When she told me the 'word world' theme, and her idea, I knew it was going to be magical.  :-)

The outside of the cake:

The inside..

You likey?  Give it a try:

• Cake Recipe found here
• Buttercream Recipe found here
• Gel food coloring used found at Michaels
• Candles found here